Hershey Bears Highlights

The Hershey Bears defeated the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 5-3 on the road Saturday night. Chris Bourque led the way for the Bears with two goals on the night, giving him 17 on the season. Andrew Gordon also tallied his 11th goal on the season and Daren Machesney had 22 saves for his 15th win. Check out the highlights from the 1st period, video courtesy of B2Networks.
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More Pictures From Development Camp

I wasn't able to get out to Kettler on Thursday due to obligations at work. I will be at the scrimmage on Friday and will have an update posted by Friday night. In the meantime here are some more pictures from Wednesday night.

Dan Dunn, Goaltender
The Capitals 6th Round Choice, #154 Overall in 2007

Viktor Dovgan, Defenseman
5 goals, 6 assists, 11 points for South Carolina Last Year

Justin Mrazek, Goaltender
The Capitals 8th Round Pick in 2004

Head Coach Glen Hanlon
Behind the Bench of the Blue Team

Defenseman Karl Alzner
The Capitals 1st Round Pick, 5th Overall in 2007

Defenseman Josh Godfrey
The Capitals 2nd Round Pick, 34th Overall in 2007

Michal Neuvirth, Goaltender
The Capitals 2nd Round Pick, 34th Overall in 2006

Daren Machesney, Goaltender
5-8-2, 3.30 gaa, .888 sv % in 16 games with South Carolina
3-3-1, 3.18 gaa, .887 sv % in 10 games with Hershey

Theo Ruth, Defenseman
The Capitals 2nd Round Pick, 46th Overall in 2007

Machesney Returns to Stingrays

Charlotte Checkers (25-18-1-2, 53 points)

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South Carolina Stingrays (26-18-0-3, 55 points)

Television: B2Networks

Radio: ESPN 910-AM

Gametime: 7:05 PM ET

With the reassignment of Nolan Schaefer to Hershey and Maxime Daigneault fully recovered from his ankle injury, their was no more room on the roster for Daren Machesney. The Caps sent the first year pro back to South Carolina to resume his role of backing up Davis Parley, the ECHL’s leading goaltender in wins, saves, and minutes played. Because of the many injuries to goaltenders within the Washington system, Machesney has moved around a lot this season. In fact, earlier this month he was demoted from Hershey to South Carolina and then promoted to the Capitals in the same day. So far this season he has a 2-5-0 record with a goals against average of 3.24 and an .878 save percentage in seven games with the Stingrays.

(Photo Courtesy of Just Sports Photography)

The move precipitated a trade today between South Carolina and Charlotte as backup goaltender Jorge Alves was sent to the Checkers for financial considerations. There was simply no more room on the roster for the seldom used goalie as he appeared in only one game with the Stingrays this season in a relief role for Parley.

He won’t have far to travel though, as the Charlotte Checkers come to South Carolina tonight to take on the Stingrays. It will be the third game in their current six game home streak. The Florida Everblades will come to town tomorrow night for the first of two back-to-back evening games.

South Carolina also announced the signing of rookie defenseman Tim Judy and the release of defenseman Jeff Moor. Judy has appeared in four games for the Stingrays so far this year recording 1 assist and a -2 defensive rating. Moor played in five games for the Stingrays without recording a point. He returns to the Columbus Cottenmouths of the Southern Professional Hockey League, where he played in 25 games earlier this season recording 2 goals and 7 assists to go along with 135 penalty minutes.

The moves come as South Carolina looks to reload for their push to a playoff berth in the ECHL’s Eastern Conference. Their 55 points currently puts them in fifth place in the South Division just 9 points behind Division and Conference leaders Gwinnett and Texas.

Reinforcements Are on the Way to Hershey

Some much needed help is on the way to Hershey. Defenseman Mike Green of the Washington Capitals and goaltender Nolan Schaefer of the San Jose Sharks were both reassigned to the Bears today.
(Photo Courtesy of Dave Sanford/Getty Images)

The 21 year old Green was a key member of the Hershey's Calder Cup championship team last season and had spent the entire season so far with the Washington Capitals. He played in 54 games for the big club recording 2 goals and 8 assists while putting up a +1 defensive rating. Since he returned from a foot injury just before the All-Star break, his play has been inconsistent at best. He has also seen his ice time decline as of late, including a season low of 5:23 in a game against Ottawa on January 16th. The return to the AHL should help Green reestablish his game back to the level he played at during the Bears playoff run.

Schaefer returns to Hershey after spending a week in San Jose as he was recalled when Evgeni Nabakov suffered a slight groin injury. He previously played in 2 games with the Bears recording a 0-2-0 record with a 4.05 goals against average and an .863 save percentage. Schaefer will provide some much needed experience to the Bears as he will split time with Maxime Daigneault who is returning from an ankle injury. The move would also allow the team to return Daren Machesney back to the South Carolina Stingrays for more seasoning.

Offense is Offensive

Improved Defensive Performance Spoiled as Caps are Shutout for the Third Time This Season
Pittsburgh Penguins 2, Washington Capitals 0
Boxscore
(Photo courtesy of Keith Srakocic/AP)


Whether it was the presence of a newly acquired defenseman in Milan Jurcina, or a determination to refocus on playing traditional Capitals' hockey, the Caps played their most complete game of the season defensively. They shut down the NHL's leading point scorer in Sidney Crosby and the leading Calder Trophy favorite in Evgeni Malkin, keeping them both off the scoreboard and denying them any significant opportunities.

Jurcina made his debut with the Washington Capitals today and made himself right at home, pairing up with former Providence Bruins teammate Shaone Morrisson. He wasted no time making an impact stopping Sidney Crosby as he attempted to go coast to coast just four minutes in. Crosby maneuvered his way around three Capitals players, but a Jurcina pokecheck stopped him from moving in on Kolzig.

Unlike previous games where the team has struggled out of the gate, the Capitals controlled the action early on recording 8 of the games first 9 shots. Six minutes in, Chris Clark had the best scoring chance with two point blank shots in front of Fleury on the power play. During the same man advantage, Alex Ovechkin served the Penguins notice that the Caps were here to play when he drilled Maxime Talbot in the open ice as he had his head down while trying to clear the puck out of his defensive zone. After taking a moment to regain his senses, Talbot headed off to the locker room for repairs. He did return later in the game.

The middle of the second period set the tone for the remainder of the game. Moments after a Steve Eminger shot rang off the post, Ronald Petrovicky beat Kolzig on a weak shot as he entered the offensive zone on a 2 on 2 situation. He faked a slap shot then squeezed a wrist shot between Kolzig's glove and right pad. The goal was an unassisted marker for Petrovicky's 2nd of the season.

That goal would be all Pittsburgh would need as despite the Caps outshooting the Penguins 30-20, they were unable to penetrate goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. He stopped all 30 of those shots for his 4th shutout of the season, improving his record to 24-12-6. The key to Fleury's success was his ability to control the first shot from the Capitals and prevent any rebounds.

Rookie Jordan Staal put the game away with 37 seconds to go as he scored an empty net goal to make it 2-0.

The shutout meant an end to Alex Ovechkin's career high point scoring streak at 13 games. It was an uncharacteristic game for Ovechkin who did not record his first shot of the game until the 7 and a half minute mark of the third period.

The loss was the Caps fifth out of their last six games overall and tenth of their last eleven on the road, dropping their record to 21-25-7. The Penguins extended their winning streak to six games and improved to 25-17-8.

Game Notes:

Milan Jurcina's debut meant Lawrence Nycholat was a healthy scratch for the first time since his recall from Hershey on December 23rd. He had been slumping as of late, recording a -7 defensive rating in his last five games.... Daren Machesney backed up Kolzig for the second consecutive game as Brent Johnson remained out with a "body" injury(?).... The loss means the Caps are now 3-17-1 in the last 21 regular season games at Pittsburgh.... The Caps were shut out for the first time since a 5-0 loss at Carolina November 9th.... The 20 shots allowed by Washington was their fewest of the season.... A Boston win at Carolina tonight would drop the Caps to 14th in the conference.

Minor Happenings

The Washington Capitals announced today that goaltender Daren Machesney has been reassigned to the South Carolina Stingrays of the ECHL. Machesney, who posted a 3-3-1 record with a 3.18 goals against average and a .887 save percentage in 10 games with the Hershey Bears, rejoins the team he began the season with. Before his recall he was 2-5-0 with a 3.24 goals against average and an .878 save percentage with the Stingrays. He will most likely return to his position of backing up starting goaltender Davis Parley. Injuries to Hershey goaltenders Freddy Cassivi and Maxime Daigneault forced his emergency recall. With the Bears acquisition of goalie Nolan Schaefer from the Worcester Sharks, and the pending return of Cassivi from his broken collarbone, there was no more room for him on the roster.

South Carolina also announce that defenseman Donny Grover has been recalled by Hershey. Grover was one of only two Stingrays players to have played in all 42 games this season posting 8 goals and 15 assists while having a -6 defensive rating. Head Coach Jason Fitzsimmons had this to say: (from Stingrayshockey.com)

"It's a great opportunity for Donny," Fitzsimmons said. "He's under contract with Hershey, so hopefully he can go up there and make a good impression. With only five defensemen it comes at a bad time for us, but developing players is what this league is all about."

At the same time the Stingrays announced that they have signed defenseman Jeff Moor to take Grover's place on the roster. Moor participated in the team's training camp this season before signing with the Columbus Cottonmouths of the SPHL. While there he posted 2 goals and 7 assists to go along with 135 penalty minutes in 25 games. He should provide the team with a solid physical presence.

Both teams return to action tomorrow night with road games. Hershey will be at the Hartford Wolf Pack, gametime 7:00 PM ET. South Carolina will be at the Gwinnett Gladiators in Duluth, Georgia, gametime 7:20 PM ET. Both games can be seen live online for only $6.00 via b2networks.

Bears Finish Up Weekend With Victory

Hershey Dominates Division Rival Penguins for Complete 60 Minutes
Hershey Bears 4, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 1
Boxscore

Washington Capitals' mascot Slapshot was on hand to see the Hershey Bears completely dominate the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Peguins from the get go. The Peguins were playing their 4th game in 5 nights and it showed as the Bears jumped all over them from the moment the puck was dropped. Despite a Chad Wiseman hooking penalty just 46 seconds into the game, the Bears were able to grab possession of the puck. Dave Steckel took a pass from defenseman Dean Arsene at the red line and moved into the Penguins zone uncontested. He fired a wrist shot past goaltender Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers into the top right corner of the net for his 14th of the season to give the Bears a 1-0 lead just 1:01 into the game. The goal was the Bears' 17th short handed goal of the season.

Hershey would keep the pressure on the Penguins and scored their second goal of the game as their first power-play of the game expired. Jeff Schultz took a pass from Jakub Klepis at the point and fired a wrist shot just inside the blue line that deflected off Penguins' defenseman Tom Gilbert's left skate into the back of the net. It was Schultz's 2nd goal of the season in his first game back with Hershey after being reassigned by the Capitals for the All-Star break.

After their second goal, the Bears continued to control the action recording the first seven shots of the game and not allowing a Wilkes-Barre shot for the first six minutes of the game. They scored again after Chris Bourque controlled the puck in the Penguins corner and fired a shot towards the net with lots of traffic in front. Steckel was able to get a stick on the puck to deflect in his second goal and the game and 15th of the season. It was the Bears third goal in their first nine shots of the game.

It was a physical game, in front of 7,653 fans at the Giant Center, as a lot of scrums followed stoppages in play. Timo Helbling had the hit of the night, leveling Penguins' left winger Alexei Mikhnov on his back as he entered the Bears zone three minutes into the game. Heavyweights Deryk Engelland and Dennis Bonvie had a nice battle at the 11:35 mark of the first period. They exchanged some big blows before Bonvie connected on consecutive rights to knock Engelland to the ice.

The Penguins tried to get back in the game and got a short-handed goal at the 3:10 mark of the second period to cut the lead to 3-1. But they were unable to build any momentum off of that goal and the score remained the same until the 13:35 mark of the third period, when Chris Bourque deflected a Chad Wiseman shot from the point into the back of the net for his 11th goal of the season, giving the Bears the 4-1 win. The victory improved Hershey's record to 28-8-3-5, 64 points putting them three points ahead of the third place Penguins, and three points behind the first place Norfolk Admirals.

Your Top 3 Stars of the Game:
1. Dave Steckel, Hershey 2 goals, 1 assist
2. Jeff Schultz, Hershey 1 goal, 1 assist
3. Chris Bourque, Hershey 1 goal, 1 assist

Game Notes: Bears coach Bruce Boudreau announced today that Maxime Daigneault could be out a couple days or a couple weeks with what is being described as a lower body injury. To take his place on the roster Hershey recalled Davis Parley from the South Carolina Stingrays who was on hand to backup Daren Machesney today.... Jamie Hunt, Marc Busenburg, Joey Tenute, and Alexandre Giroux were scratched from the lineup.... The Bears continuously used Jakub Klepis at the point on the power play's first unit.... Hershey currently leads the league in penalty minutes as a team with 1180.